Common Cocklebur
Scientific Name: Xanthium strumarium L.
Other Names: clotbur
Life Cycle: summer annual
General Description: Erect, branched plant with speckled stems and prickly burs.
Seedlings: Hypocotyls are purple towards the base. Cotyledons are thick, fleshy, lanceolate, and fairly large.
True Leaves and Stem: First
true leaves are opposite, all others are alternate. Leaf surface is
rough with stiff hairs (feels like sandpaper). Leaves are triangular
shaped with three prominent veins and serrated margins. Stems are
branched, rough, and have purple speckling.
Roots: Stout taproot.
Flower and Fruit: Flowers
are enclosed within the bur. Burs are elliptical to egg-shaped, brown,
woody, and covered with prickles. Two long beaks project from the tip of
the bur. Each bur contains two seeds. One seed has a short dormancy
period, while the other can stay dormant for one to several years.